Support of guard rails



NOV. 7, 1967 5, MELF| I 3,351,311

SUPPORT OF GUARD RAILS Filed Jan. 25, 1966 FIGL.

3,351,311 SUPPORT OF GUARD RAILS Samuel T. Melfi, 1601 NW. 1st Court,Boca Raton, Fla. 33432 Filed Jan. 25, 1966, Ser. No. 536,228 2 Claims.(Cl. 248-226) ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSURE A clamp for the support oftemporary guard rails of the kind used on balconies, shaft openings,porches or the like and primarily during construction work on abuilding, the clamp having an upright post to which the guard rails areattached. The post is tubular and is provided at its lower end with arigidly-attached C-clamp. The C-clamp has a clamping screw which isthreadable axially into the post and has a non-round or square upper endlocated inside of the post and well below the upper end of the post. Theadjustment of the clamping screw thus requires a long tool or socketwrench which must be inserted down into the post to engage with thesquare end of the clamping screw. Thereby, the adjustment of theclamping screw and hence the unauthorized removal of the clamp cannot bereadily effected when a suitable tool to extend down into the post toengage the clamping screw is not available.

The present invention has reference to clamps of a type employed for thesupport of guard rails or similar protective enclosures and particularlyto a type used on balconies, porches, etc. to protect workers during theerection of or Work upon a building. It is desirable in buildingstructures to provide temporary protective rails on porches, highbalconies, steps and other places during the progress of work on abuilding, and it is an object of the present invention to provide aclamp which can be easily and conveniently attached along an edge of theporch, balcony or other building structure or element and by which guardrails will be supported and positioned in a way to prevent workers fromfalling off the structure.

It is an object of the invention to provide a device of this kind whichwill provide one or more guard rails at convenient heights; which can bequickly and easily installed; which can be tightened or loosened by anoperator while he is in a standing position; which requires only onetool such as a ratchet wrench for its installation; which can employstandard metal guard rails instead of lumber and thus will require nonailing or splitting of lumber.

It is another object of the invention to provide a device of thischaracter which can be easily dismantled for packing or storage andwhich has no laterally projecting elements likely to catch the clothingof the workers in the area of the guard rails.

It is a further object of the invention to provide a light weight deviceof this character, which provides greater strength and safety for theworkers, and which can be quickly and easily removed, thus saving timeand money for the contractor.

With these and other objects to be hereinafter set forth in view, I havedevised the arrangement of parts to be described and more particularlypointed out in the claims appended hereto.

In the accompanying drawing, wherein an illustrative embodiment of theinvention is disclosed,

FIG. 1 is a side elevational view of a clamp for guard rails asconstructed in accordance with the invention;

FIG. 2 is a view takenat right angles to that of FIG. 1 and as viewedfrom the left of FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 is a view, partly in section, of a portion of the clamp, showingdetails of the threaded clamping rod;

FIG. 4 is a sectional view of the upper end of the tube with the closurecap fitted thereon; and

FIG. 5 shows the tool for the adjustment of the threaded clamping rod.

Referring to the drawing, 1 generally indicates the frame of the clamp.The same is preferably composed of angle bars welded together to form asubstantially C- shaped member. Said frame includes an upper horizontalleg 2 and a lower horizontal leg 3, said legs being rigidly connectedtogether by means of the vertical bar 4.

Welded to the vertical and horizontal flanges of the upper leg 2 is oneend of a lengthy metal tube or sleeve 5 constituting a vertical hollowpost extending upright from the top of the frame 1. Said tube 5 extendsupwardly from the leg 2 for a substantial distance and to a heightnecessary for the support of one or more guard rails, two of which arerespectively indicated at 6 and 7.

At 8 is shown a continuously threaded rod which is axially adjustablethrough an aperture 9 provided in one of the flanges of the upper leg 2of the frame 1. Said rod 8 is threadably adjustable through a nut 10which is welded or otherwise fixedly mounted in the lower end of thetube 5 as clearly seen in FIG. 3. The upper portion of the rod 8 extendsupwardly within the tube 5 and at its upper end the rod is formed orotherwise provided with a non-round or square extremity 11. This enablesa lengthy adjusting tool, such as shown at 12 in FIG. 5 to be inserteddown through the open upper end of the tube 5 to engage the non-roundend 11 of the rod 8 to turn the rod and thereby adjust it axially andthreadably through the nut 10. A ratchet wrench 23 (FIG. 5) may befitted on the upper end 24 of the tool 12 to enable the tool to beeasily rotated to turn the rod 8.

At 13 is shown a clamping plate, formed with a recess or depression 14in its upper face and which recess can receive the rounded lower end 15of the rod 8, the pressure of which clamps the plate firmly down uponthe flooring or other surface 16 of the building structure. Thus by theadjustment of the rod 8 through the nut 10, the plate 13 will be clampeddown upon the upper face of the concrete flooring of a balcony, porch,steps or other structure which it is desired to protect by one or moreguard rails. The flooring or other element 16 is clamped between theplate 13 and the lower leg 3 of the frame 1, and the plate 13 can be aseparate element or it can be carried on and by the rod 8.

The upper end of the tube 5 may be closed by a suitable closure cap 17which is internally threaded as shown at 18 for the threadable receptionupon the external threads provided on the upper end area of the tube 5.Extending upwardly from the closed top of the cap 17 is a threaded stud19 having a square or hexagonal base 20 on the top of the cap. A guardrail 7, perforated to be received by the stud 19, rests on the base 20and is clamped down on the cap by means of a wing nut 21 threadablyreceived on the stud. A second guard rail, shown at 6, may be attachedto the tube or post 5 by bolts or welded on stud tightened with a wingnut or other suitable means as shown at 22.

The described device is such that it can be easily fitted in place atthe edge of a porch, balcony, steps or other structure with a minimum ofeffort on the part of the installer. The guard rails are readily fittedon it and maximum protection is thereby provided for workmen or otherson the balcony or porch. It will be understood that the clamps areplaced at predetermined distances apart as desired to thereby receiveand support guard rails of any required lengths and with advantagesreadily apparent to those skilled in this art.

Having thus described an embodiment of the invention, it is obvious thatthe same is not to be restricted thereto, but is broad enough to coverall structures coming within the scope of the annexed claims.

What I claim is:

1. A clamp for guard rails comprising, a frame in substantially C-shape,said frame including spaced horizontal legs connected by a vertical leg,the uppermost of the horizontal legs carrying an attachedupwardly-directed tube having an internally-threaded portion, the tubebeing stationarily attached to the frame and being thus non-rotative inrespect thereto, a threaded rod ad justably extending through theuppermost leg and projecting upwardly within the tube and threadablyengaging the internally-threaded portion of the tube, said rod beingrotatively adjustable relatively to the tube, a clamping plate engagedby one end of the rod at a point between the horizontal legs of theframe, said plate clamping a building element between it and thelowermosthorizontal leg of the frame, the rod having a non-round endlocated within the tube and located Well below the upper end of the tubefor engagement by a tool required to be extended down into the tube andengaged with said non-round end and turned to ,threadably adjust the rodaxially in respect to the, tube, the non-round end of the rod beingaccessible for the rotative adjustment of the rod only by a toolinserted down into the tube from the upper end of the same.

frame, a threaded rod entering the tube and threadable.

axially through the same, said rod terminating within the tube below theupper end of the same, a plate clamped by one end of the rod against abuilding element, the tube having means for supporting guard rails, saidtube being open at one end whereby means may be inserted down into thetube to engage the rod at its upper end to adjustably rotate itindependently of and relatively to the tube while the tube remainsstationary, to regulate the clamping pressure of the rod upon the plate,the rod having a non-round upper end located within the tube and exposedtherein for engagement by said adjusting means inserted down into thetube and engaged with said non- UNITED STATES PATENTS 467,328 1/1892Eichenberg 248226.1 1,495,189 5/1924 Mack. 2,195,366 3/1940 Haigh248--226 x 2,386,494 10/1945 Nagle 52-422 X 2,687,865 8/1954 Young248-226.1 x 3,190,648 6/1965 Kallenbach 248-230 x 3,260,510 7/1966Ranson 248188.4 x

FOREIGN PATENTS 935,252 8/1963 Great Britain.

ROY D. FRAZIER, Primary Examiner.

R. P. SEITTER, Assistant Examiner,

1. A CLAMP FOR GUARD RAILS COMPRISING, A FRAME IN SUBSTANTIALLY C-SHAPE,SAID FRAME INCLUDING SPACED HORIZONTAL LEGS CONNECTED BY A VERTICAL LEG,THE UPPERMOST OF THE HORIZONTAL LEGS CARRYING AN ATTACHEDUPWARDLY-DIRECTED TUBE HAVING AN INTERNALLY-THREADED PORTION, THE TUBEBEING STATIONARILY ATTACHED TO THE FRAME AND BEING THUS NON-ROTATIVE INRESPECT THERETO, A THREADED ROD ADJUSTABLY EXTENDING THROUGH THEUPPERMOST LEG AND PROJECTING UPWARDLY WITHIN THE TUBE AND THREADABLYENGAGING THE INTERNALLY-THREADED PORTION OF THE TUBE, SAID ROD BEINGROTATIVELY ADJUSTABLE RELATIVELY TO THE TUBE, A CLAMPING PLATE ENGAGEDBY ONE END OF THE ROD AT A POINT BETWEEN THE HORIZONTAL LEGS OF THEFRAME, SAID PLATE CLAMPING A BUILDING ELEMENT BETWEEN IT AND THELOWERMOST HORIZONTAL LEG OF THE FRAME, THE ROD HAVING A NON-ROUND ENDLOCATED WITHIN THE TUBE AND LOCATED WELL BELOW THE UPPER END OF THE TUBEFOR ENGAGEMENT BY A TOOL REQUIRED TO BE EXTENDED DOWN INTO THE TUBE ANDENGAGED WITH SAID NON-ROUND END AND TURNED TO THREADABLY ADJUST THE RODAXIALLY IN RESPECT TO THE TUBE, THE NON-ROUND ANF OF THE ROD BEINGACCESSIBLE FOR THE ROTATIVE ADJUSTMENT OF THE ROD ONLY BY A TOOLINSERTED DOWN INTO THE TUBE FROM THE UPPER END OF THE SAME.